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K7JUS - Justin edited this page Oct 10, 2026 · 3 revisions

Kainos

Kainos is a free, open-source SDR program for Windows, built for the Hermes Lite 2. It's a fork of Thetis, based on Reid Campbell MI0BOT's HL2 edition of Thetis, maintained by Justin Cron, K7JUS.

Everything you know from Thetis is still there. Kainos adds a modern layout and a set of features built in, so you don't need extra programs or virtual audio cables for them.

What Kainos adds

  • A modern layout: VFO flags on the panadapter, a right-hand column of tabs you arrange yourself, and a left-hand column of buttons. See The Kainos Layout.
  • A guided setup for the HL2: callsign, boards, audio and look in a few steps. See Getting Started.
  • Kainos Audio: EQ, compressor, AetherVoice and more on receive and transmit. See Kainos Audio.
  • FreeDV RADE digital voice, with the FreeDV Reporter. See FreeDV RADE.
  • Audio scope: a waveform and audio spectrum of what you hear and send. See Audio Scope.
  • RTTY and CW decode and send, with macros. See RTTY and CW.
  • DX cluster and POTA spots on the panadapter. See Spots.
  • KiwiSDR: listen to receivers around the world, with their own panadapter and waterfall, even with the HL2 off. See KiwiSDR.
  • A licence-aware band plan on the panadapter. See Band Plan.
  • An SWR sweep for your antennas. See SWR Sweep.
  • Safety nets: one-click settings backup, update notices and a bug-report button. See Backups and Updates.

Start here

  1. Installing
  2. Getting Started
  3. The Kainos Layout

Questions? See Troubleshooting and FAQ, or use Report a bug at the top right of Kainos.

Download

The latest release is on the Releases page.

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